How
do women authors from Francophone Africa and the Caribbean write about the
body, be it male or female? What does the female body mean and symbolise in the
novels and plays of these writers? Works by Calixthe Beyala born in Cameroon,
Aminata Sow Fall from Senegal and Simone Schwarz-Bart from Guadeloupe will be
used to approach the subject. In Tu
t'appelleras Tanga (Your Name Shall Be Tanga), Beyala treats the female body by transcending its
essence, by creating a communion of destiny between a white woman who receives
the mission of incarnating the life of her black prison's roommate. Femme noire, femme nue... (Black woman, naked woman) exposes the
woman as the embodiment of the evil. Comment
cuisiner son mari à l'africaine? [How to cook one's husband the African
way] links nourishing the body with strengthening the marital relationship. Pluie et vent sur Télumée Miracle (The Bridge of Beyond) and Ton Beau Capitaine (Your Handsome Captain) by Simone
Schwarz-Bart expose two opposite figures of women in relationship to their
bodies. There is a strong sense of symbolism in the language expression, in
metaphors, in objects (such as money,
a shirt, a gift) that directly refers to the human body. Douceurs du bercail (Tendernesses of home) by Aminata Sow Fall is built around the topic
of the female body: the Senegalese Asta hits a security agent because she feels
offended by the way she touches her body at Roissy Airport, France. She is
refused entry and the French Media reports an attempt of crime. What can be
concluded from a philosophical perspective? The range of conception varies from
strict Puritanism to Libertinage, from self control and self-respect to
no-limitation in the use of the body. Transfer of experience, embodiment of
pleasure and evil, feministic freedom, protection of moral values against
perversions can be found in these writings.
(Presented at the Cave Hill International Philosophy Symposium 2012: "Body, Mind, Cognition", November 17, 2012)
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